SOS Hondoq News

Monday, May 28, 2012

Time for a decision on Ħondoq ir-Rummien


Published on the Malta Independent on Sunday, 27th May, 2012 by James A. Tyrrell. 
Decisions are being made at the moment regarding the future of the Hondoq project application and I feel it is important that this issue is kept in the public eye in order to ensure that things do not happen behind people’s backs, as has been the case in the past. I am referring, of course, to events that occurred back in 2002, when the entire area earmarked by the developers for the marina project belonged to the government. It had been expropriated, along with the reverse osmoses plant and the land on which it stands.
Then, for some reason, the land in question was returned to the owner by President Guido de Marco. Shortly after it was returned, Mepa received an application to build a yacht marina, a hotel and 283 villas, flats and bungalows. Coincidence? Personally, I don’t believe in coincidences and my suspicions are given weight by the fact that this area – which up to this point had been Outside Development Zone (ODZ) – was suddenly changed to a tourist and marine-related activities area, again behind the backs of Qala local council.
It should also be remembered that not all the land was returned, as the reverse osmoses plant and the land on which it stands still belongs to the government. Is this why the developers earmarked this area for a car park, so as not to hold up the main project in case there was some problem with it being handed over?
At the time this application was sent to Mepa, Qala local council had already applied for a permit to turn the area into a national park, so Mepa was well aware that the local council had plans for the area. We also need to remember that the results of a referendum carried out in 2002 showed that 85 per cent of people were against the marina project.
We now need to look at December 2009, when Qala local council, Moviment Harsien Hondoq (MHH) and Flimkien ghal Ambjent (FAA) organised a competition for university student architects to show what they would do with the area. They decided that the old reverse osmoses plant should be turned into a youth hostel and submitted plans for the rest of the area which were absolutely stunning. See www.youtube.com/watch?v=7L_aXqa5eJU&feature=related
We now come to the present, where we recently learned that the Mepa Environment Protection Directorate (EPD) had recommended refusal of the Hondoq project application, a decision that was welcomed by all those concerned. In order to counter this objection, the developers submitted a fresh application omitting the marina and substituting it with a “swimming lagoon”. A “swimming lagoon”, by the way – and in case you’re wondering – is a marina before the boats are allowed in! We have to remember here that the developers themselves said that the whole project would either stand or fall on the marina being part of it, so what has changed?
Now, as someone familiar with the area I cannot imagine what it would be like with an extra 2,000 vehicles a day (that’s an average of an additional 83 vehicles an hour) trying to get through the village. That is the estimated number that would be generated, once this development is finished. We also have to consider probably two years of heavy-vehicle traffic during the construction phase, bringing with it high quantities of dust and vehicle emission levels.
With regard to the so-called impartial Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), it turned out to read like an advert for the area’s development! Hondoq ir-Rummien belongs to the people of Qala in particular, the people of Malta in general and to all the tourists who flock there every year to enjoy its beautiful waters. It does not belong to money-grabbing developers whose only interest is in lining their pockets. To that end, people have a choice: they can either fight for what they know is right or they can roll over and show their bellies to the land rapists. The choice is now up to them.

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Ħondoq appeal case put off as developers fail to present submissions

Published on the Malta Independent on Wednesday, 23rd May, 2012 by Francesca Vella. 
Ten years after the would-be developers of the Ħondoq Bay area submitted their first application for the controversial Qala Creek Project, the case has been put off again as the developers failed to present submissions related to their appeal on time.
Yesterday, the authority’s Planning Appeals Board was scheduled to hear a fresh appeal by the developers, after new plans replacing the proposed yacht marina with a swimming lagoon were turned down.
But the case was put off till 16 October after the developers requested an extension with respect to the presentation of their submissions.
Architect Lino Bianco, the consultant acting on behalf of the Qala local council, said the developers’ deadline to send in their submissions expired about two months ago.
“They asked for the deadline to be extended till 10 June, but the Appeals Board actually extended it till the end of June. We, as objectors, have two months to reply, and the case will then be heard in October.”
Qala deputy mayor Paul Buttigieg, of the Moviment Ħarsien Ħondoq (Ħondoq Protection Movement) said: “The developers had enough time to present their submissions. Why did they fail to send them on time?
“The case, which dates back to 2002, is constantly being delayed. People deserve to know the fate of Ħondoq Bay. I am never going to give up trying to save Ħondoq, because I strongly believe that it should be left for future generations to enjoy.”
In March, a group of NGOs – Moviment Ħarsien Ħondoq, FAA, Ramblers, Nature Trust, Wirt Għawdex, Friends of the Earth Malta, Din l-Art Ħelwa and the Gozo University Group – slammed the latest version of the controversial proposal submitted in that it went far beyond the footprint of the original application to include the footprint of the defunct reverse osmosis, or desalination plant, located on the right-hand side of the bay.
That land, the NGOs said, was public property and the developers have proposed the construction of a public car park in the facility’s stead.
Saying they “feel very strongly about the site being handed over for speculative purposes” in a joint statement, the organisations feel that the developers will, if the land is or has been transferred, gain additional area for the project which falls outside the project’s original footprint.
In another twist to the long-running tale, Opposition leader Joseph Muscat, on a recent visit to Gozo, had pitched the concept of transforming the dilapidated building into new facilities, including an indoor swimming pool.
Dr Muscat said the plan, following consultations with nearby Qala residents, would be to demolish what is effectively quite an eyesore spoiling one of the country’s most picturesque bays, to make way for a new facility, on the same or a smaller footprint, to house an indoor swimming pool and fitness centre, public toilets and changing rooms as well as a restaurant and cafeteria.
“The buildings would be designed and constructed in such a way as to make them harmonise with the natural habitat of the bay. The design would also ensure that the highest environmental standards are met, making use of recycled material, recycled aggregate, recycled concrete, geo-thermal energy and photovoltaic panels for energy,” Dr Muscat said.
The opposing NGOs had said in March that, “Mepa’s Environment Protection Directorate (EPD) took three years to get a non-biased Environmental Impact Assessment of acceptable quality from the developers, until finally a ‘barely certifiable version’ was received. Subsequently, the EPD recommended the project’s refusal in mid-2011.
“Before the Mepa Board could give its final decision on the project, the developers withdrew the original proposal, and suggested a new one in late 2011, replacing the marina with a swimming lagoon, despite the developers’ previous insistence that the marina was essential to the project’s success.
“This proposal went beyond the footprint of the original application, hence Mepa requested that the developers submit a totally new application. The developers appealed against this, and the process is still ongoing.”

Tkompli l-kontroversja dwar ħondoq ir-Rummien Komplew iġeddu ż-żmien

Pubblikat fuq l-Orizzont nhar l-Erbgha. 23 ta' Mejju, 2012 


Meta suppost ilbieraħ kellu jinstema’ l-appell dwar il-proġett ta’ Ħondoq ir-Rummien fil-Qala, Għawdex, wara li l-Bord tal-Appell tal-MEPA kien ordna lill-iżviluppaturi biex jissottomettu l-pjanti l-ġodda peress li dawk ippreżentati huma totalment differenti mill-pjanti oriġinali, fil-fatt ma sar xejn. Kulma ħareġ mil-laqgħa tal-bieraħ kien li l-każ għat-trattazzjoni finali issa ġie pospost għal nofs Ottubru. 

Fil-laqgħa li saret ilbieraħ quddiem il-Bord tal-Appell l-iżviluppaturi kellhom jissottomettu l-pjanti l-ġodda iżda minflok talbu estensjoni sal-10 ta’ Ġunju. Kemm il-Kunsill Lokali tal-Qala kif ukoll il-MEPA oġġezzjonaw għal dan, iżda l-Bord tal-Appell ta lill-iżvilupatturi sal-aħħar ta’ Ġunju biex iressaq is-sottomissjonijet u ta lill-Kunsill xahrejn żmien biex jirrispondu. 

Il-każ issa se jkompli jinstema’ fis-16 ta’ Ottubru meta jkunu trattati dak li jkun inkiteb u wara l-każ imur għad-deċiżjoni finali.

Astrid Vella mill-Għaqda Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar, qalet lil l-orizzont li dan mhu xejn ħlief dewmien żejjed u ddesriviet id-deċiżjoni bħala li “ġustizzja ttardjata hija ġustizzja miċħuda”. 

Hija qalet li wara li Għawdex ingħata t-tielet premju fil-kwalità tal-baj­jiet mill-Unjoni Ewropea, tittama li ma tkunx il-MEPA stess li dan il-premju jittieħed jekk toħroġ il-permessi biex jinqered Ħondoq ir-Rummien.

Il-Viċi Sindku tal-Qala, Paul Buttigieg, qal lil dan il-ġurnal li l-iżviluppaturi kellhom żmien biżżejjed biex jirrispondu u dan mhu xejn ħlief ħela ta’ ħin.

Fost dawk li qed joġġezz­jonaw dwar dan il-proġett hemm il-Moviment Ħarsien Ħondoq, Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar, Ramblers, Nature Trust, Wirt Għawdex, FoE Malta, Din l-Art Ħelwa u l-GUG.

Ħondoq project appeal put off


Published on the Times of Malta on Wednesday, 23rd May, 2012.
An appeal hearing contesting the planning authority’s refusal to accept new plans for the controversial Ħondoq Ir-Rummien project has been postponed again, this time to October.
Lawyer Michael Sciriha and architect Edward Bencini, for the developer, yesterday asked the appeals board for more time to submit legal documents contesting the decision to refute a set of fresh plans.
The updated proposals replace the planned yacht marina with a swimming lagoon. The Malta Environment and Planning Authority ruled these had to be submitted through a new application, prompting an appeal by the €120 million project developer.
The appeals board accepted the request for more time and put off the hearing to October 16, when “submissions will be heard and then the case will go for a decision, come what may”, chairman Chris Falzon said.
This is the second postponement as a similar request was made in January.
Qala councillor Paul Buttigieg, a registered objector, said the developer had had enough time to make submissions: “People have been waiting 10 years for a decision to be made on this project.”
The project to build a five-star hotel, 285 flats and villas, 731 underground parking spaces, 10 shops and five restaurants had been criticised by Mepa’s environment unit and environmental groups.
The groups are calling for the Ħondoq area to serve as a council-run national park and rehabilitated into an open space for everyone, as originally earmarked in the area’s local plans.
An online petition urging the planning authority to turn down the project has attracted more than 4,000 signatures. The petition can be found at http://raxerri.com/soshondoq .

Monday, May 21, 2012

Mepa to hear Ħondoq appeal on Tuesday


Published on The Malta Independent on Sunday, 20th May, 2012. 
In a controversial application that has been before the Malta Environment and Planning Authority for years, the authority will hear a fresh appeal by the proposed developers on Tuesday, after new plans replacing the proposed yacht marina with a swimming lagoon were turned down.
In March, a group of NGOs – Moviment Ħarsien Ħondoq, FAA, Ramblers, Nature Trust, Wirt Għawdex, Friends of the Earth Malta, Din l-Art Ħelwa and GUG –slammed the latest version of the controversial proposal submitted in that it went far beyond the footprint of the original application to include the footprint of the defunct reverse osmosis, or desalination plant, located on the right hand side of the bay.
That land, the NGOs said, was public property and the developers have proposed the construction of a public car park in the facility’s stead.
Saying they “feel very strongly about the site being handed over for speculative purposes” in a joint statement, the organisations feel that the developers will, if the land is or has been transferred, gain additional area for the project which falls outside the project’s original footprint.
In another twist to the long-running tale, Opposition leader Joseph Muscat, on a recent visit to Gozo, had pitched the concept of transforming the dilapidated building into new facilities, including an indoor swimming pool.
Dr Muscat said the plan, following consultations with nearby Qala residents, would be to demolish what is effectively quite an eyesore spoiling one of the country’s most picturesque bays, to make way for a new facility, on the same or a smaller footprint, to house an indoor swimming pool and fitness centre, public toilets and changing rooms as well as a restaurant and cafeteria.
“The buildings would be designed and constructed in such a way as to make them harmonise with the natural habitat of the bay. The design would also ensure that the highest environmental standards are met, making use of recycled material, recycled aggregate, recycled concrete, geo-thermal energy and photovoltaic panels for energy,” Dr Muscat said.
Ħondoq ir-Rummien’s chequered planning history began with the 1969 government expropriation of Hondoq Quarry, including the site of the reverse osmosis plant, in order to provide stone for the Mgarr breakwater, the eight NGOs recalled.
They said that in 1988, Gozo Prestige Holidays had entered into a ‘promise of sale’ with the previous owners, the Augustinian Brothers, depending on full development permits being acquired. That same year, the Qala local council also applied to convert the area into a National Park, but the high permit fees required by Mepa meant it was not feasible to continue at the time.
In June 2002, the land was returned to the Augustinian Brothers, excluding the site of the reverse osmosis plant. In July, the developers put in an application for the Qala Creek Project, despite the area’s ODZ status, and the NGOs claim the proposal violated the draft Local Plan published in June 2002, agreed upon by Qala local council and the Malta Environment and Planning Authority, which states: “The preferred use is to reclaim the area either for agricultural use or afforestation.”
The slightly modified Qala Creek development project was again presented to Mepa in January 2006, but it still ran against the draft Local Plan and ODZ status.
The opposing NGOs had said in March that, “This had been changed without the knowledge or approval of Qala local council or the public,” pointing out that the Local Plan now states: “The preferred use is to sensitively develop the area. Tourism and marine related development may be considered by Mepa.”
They had added, “Mepa’s Environment Protection Directorate (EPD) took three years to get a non-biased EIS of acceptable quality from the developers, until finally a ‘barely certifiable version’ was received. Subsequently, the EPD recommended the project’s refusal in mid-2011.
“Before the Mepa Board could give its final decision on the project, the developers withdrew the original proposal, and suggested a new one in late 2011, replacing the marina with a swimming lagoon, despite the developers previously insistence that the marina was essential to the project’s success.
“This proposal went beyond the footprint of the original application, hence Mepa requested that the developers submit a totally new application. The developers appealed against this, and the process is still ongoing.”

Hondoq ir-Rummien belongs to the people not to developers


Published on www.gozonews.com on Sunday, 20th May, 2012 by James A. Tyrrell. 
Readers Letter – “Decisions are being made at the moment regarding the future of the Hondoq project application and I feel it’s important that this issue is kept in the public eye in order to ensure that things don’t happen behind the backs of the people as they have done in the past. I’m referring of course to events which occurred back in 2002.
“At this time the entire area which the developers have earmarked for the marina project belonged to the Government. It had been expropriated along with the reverse osmosis plant and the land it stands on.
“Then for some reason the land in question was returned to the owner by President Guido de Marco. Shortly after it was returned MEPA received an application to build a yacht marina, hotel and 283 villas, flats and bungalows. Coincidence? Personally I don’t believe in coincidences and that suspicion is given weight by the fact that this area which up until this point had been Outside Development Zone (ODZ) was suddenly changed to a tourist and marine related activities area.
“It should also be remembered that not all the land was returned as the reverse osmosis plant and the land it stands on still belongs to the Government. Is this why the developers earmarked this area for a car park, in case there was some problem with it being turned over and so as not to hold up the main project?
“At the time this application was sent to MEPA the local Qala Council had already applied to turn the area into a National park so MEPA were well aware that the local Council had plans for the area. We also need to remember that the results of a referendum carried out in 2002 were that 85% of people were against the marina project.
“We now need to look at December 2009 when Qala Local Council, Moviment Harsien Hondoq (MHH) and Flimkien ghal Ambjent (FAA) organised a competition for University student architects to show what they would do to the area.
“They decided that the old reverse osmosis plant should be turned into a youth hostel and submitted plans for the rest of the area which were absolutely stunning. www.youtube.com
“We now come to the present where we recently learned that the MEPA Environment Protection Directorate (EPD) had recommended refusal of the Hondoq project application, a decision that was welcomed by all concerned parties. In order to counter this objection the developers submitted a fresh application leaving out the marina and substituting it with a ‘swimming lagoon.’ A swimming lagoon by the way in case you are wondering is a marina before the boats are allowed in! We have to remember here that the developers themselves stated that the whole project would either stand or fall on the marina being part of it, so what has changed?
“Now as someone familiar with the area I can’t imagine what it would be like with an extra 2000 vehicles a day trying to get through the village. That is the estimated number which would be generated once this development was finished. In case you are wondering that’s an extra 83 vehicles per hour every hour of every day on top of the present traffic.
“We also have to consider the up to two years of heavy vehicle traffic during the construction phase bringing with it high dust and vehicle fume levels.
“With regard to the so called impartial Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA ) it turned out to read like an advert for the areas development! Hondoq ir-Rummien belongs to the people of Qala in particular, the people of Malta in general and to all the tourists who flock there every year to enjoy it’s beautiful waters.
“It does not belong to money grabbing developers whose only interest is in lining their pockets. To that end the people have a choice, they can fight for what they know is right, or they can roll over and show their belly. The choice is now over to them.”

Marina Appeal: Hearing for Hondoq project on Tuesday


Published on the Times of Malta on Saturday, 19th May, 2012
Photo: David Schembri
An appeal hearing on the planning authority’s refusal to accept new plans for the controversial Ħondoq Ir-Rummien project will take place next week.
The appeal was filed after the Malta Environment and Planning Authority refused to accept a fresh set of proposals submitted by the developers, who have suggested replacing the planned yacht marina with a swimming lagoon.
The regulator said the updated plans had to be submitted through a new application, prompting an appeal from the developers of the €120 million project in Gozo.
The hearing will take place on Tuesday.
The project to build a five-star hotel, 285 flats and villas, 731 underground parking spaces, 10 shops and five restaurants had been slammed by Mepa’s environment unit and several environmental groups. These associations are calling for the Ħondoq area to be converted into a national park, run by the council, and rehabilitated into an open space for everyone, as was originally earmarked in the area’s local plans.
An online petition urging the planning authority to turn down the project has attracted more than 4,000 signatures.
The petition can be found at http://raxerri.com/soshondoq